Residents of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, are probably cheesed off at Donald Trump after he called the site of next month’s Republican National Convention a “horrible city.”

The convention begins July 15, but the former president reportedly insulted the Midwestern city during a meeting on Thursday with House and Senate Republicans, according to journalist Jake Sherman.

“Milwaukee, where we are having our convention, is a horrible city,” is how Trump reportedly expressed his displeasure to the GOP members of Congress.

Trump’s reported diss of Milwaukee comes amid speculation that he might not attend the GOP convention in person and instead hold convention-related events from Mar-a-Lago.

Wisconsin Republicans tried to defend Trump’s honor after Sherman’s initial tweet but didn’t seem to agree on the proper spin.

Dan Shafer, a Wisconsin-based political reporter, noted at least three different excuses for the comments were suggested.

One Cheese State Republican claimed Trump was griping about the city’s crime rate, while another claimed he was worried about election fraud, and a third said the former president never said the words.

Trump adviser Steven Cheung also claimed the reported Milwaukee insult was about “how terrible crime and voter fraud are.”

However, social media users poked holes in Cheung’s defense by noting that other top Trump advisers are claiming it never happened, while another pointed out that “the fact there are no less than four completely different spin jobs going around on what he meant is proof the cleanup panic scramble is on.”

The Trump campaign later sent out a statement “debunking” the comments but offering the same three different spin jobs previously mentioned as evidence.

Wisconsin Democrats quickly responded to Trump’s Milwaukee insult with a statement by Democratic coordinated campaign manager Garren Randolph:

“If Donald Trump thinks Milwaukee is so horrible, then he shouldn’t come to our city. Milwaukee – our state’s largest and most diverse city and home to more than 577,000 people, the Bucks and Brewers, and the country’s best beer – deserves better than a convicted felon, racist, and wannabe dictator who hates us and our values,”

Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin also sang Milwaukee’s praises and said Trump wouldn’t understand why the city is so great “even if a jury told him so.

Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson was also apparently unhappy with Trump’s comments and went on the attack during a press conference.

“I find it kind of perplexing, I find it kind of strange, that he would insult the largest city in Wisconsin because he’s running for president.

“He obviously wants to win Wisconsin, go win the election. And so to insult the state that’s hosting your convention, I think is kind of kind of bizarre, actually kind of unhinged, in a way.”

Other people suggested insulting Milwaukee might backfire on Trump since thousands of residents voted for him in 2020.

Others piled on:

Although Trump’s reported comments about Milwaukee were rude, he’s not the only Republican who has been giving the city short shrift.

Until a few weeks ago, the background image on the GOP convention website showed Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, not Milwaukee.

CORRECTION: A prior version of this story misspelled the name of Milwaukee’s mayor.